Love in Silence
by Forgetful01
Summary: For the anon who had requested this who knows how long ago. Reader X Karkat, SFW


Karkat was still sleeping when you woke up. He was lying on his side, facing you. It was one of the few times the Cancer looked relaxed and peaceful. The usual scowl was replaced with a soft smile, and every so often he would mumble something that sounded like your name. Part of you wanted to stay and enjoy the view for just a little longer but you carefully swung your legs over the edge of the rickety bed and you made your way to the bathroom. Karkat would still be asleep by the time you're done. He had gone to bed later than you had, as usual, but that was to be expected. Karkat hardly got any sleep these days, what with Gamzee and Dave's kismesis antics causing trouble around the boarding house. Karkat always told his moirail just to "let it fucking be" but the clown could never let a grudge go; especially when it came to the Strider.

You turn the water on and hold your hand under the stream, waiting for it to warm up. From the bedroom you could still see the alarm clock, and the red illuminating numbers. It was still relatively early in the morning; you might go back to bed once you were done in the shower. After a few more minutes the water was warm enough to stand and you hopped in. You weren't pressed for time so you leisurely washed yourself at a slow but steady pace. Karkat didn't take showers, but he took baths that would last at least an hour, if not longer. Not that you really minded. It was no big deal.

Once you were clean enough to start the day, you dried off and got dressed; a t-shirt and pajama bottoms. You had given Karkat matching boxers for a birthday that had long since passed, but he of course never wore them. He kept them in the original package in the top dresser drawer. You didn't mind that either, you know he appreciated the gift even if he showed it in a way you weren't always exactly familiar with. You and he had been together for a while now. You vaguely kept track of the length, but Karkat didn't. He knew anniversary dates, but if he kept track of more than that, you didn't know. It didn't exactly matter anyway. You had him and he had you, that was surely enough.

Karkat was stirring as you exited the bathroom. You smiled in greeting and he gave you a soft frown in return. It was almost a smile, if the corners had been just a little more upturned. But it was Karkat, and that was good enough for you. He mumbled something, probably an insult; but it was close enough to being a pet name that you let it slide. You gave him a quick kiss on the cheek and he spit like an enraged cat, but the light reddish tint to his cheeks showed you he really didn't mind. Not that you needed the blush to tell you he didn't mind. You already knew. He snapped another clipped insult at you as he pulled his jeans up to his hips and shuffled off to the bathroom, closing the door behind him. You had once read somewhere that animals are very territorial when it came to places they have their private time at. Maybe that explained why even when he went to take a bath, which at any time you could walk in on, and he would smack and splash the water at you like a child in the midst of a temper tantrum. Others just chalked it up to the 'being a troll thing.' You, on the other hand, found it mildly amusing.

While Karkat was in the bathroom you left the bedroom and made your way to the small kitchen in the living room corner. Karkat usually did the cooking, while you did the dishes. You were half tempted to try and make up something real quick, but you satisfied yourself with a glass of water. Just then Karkat emerged from the bathroom and he went straight to the fridge. He grabbed a few eggs and a strip or two of bacon, ("Infertile embryo's and pieces of pig meat" He called them), and began to spray a pan with a cheap anti-stick fluid. Birds were chirping outside and the usual sound of traffic floated from the streets below. You and Karkat rented the top floor while Gamzee and Dave rented the basement level. Sollux and Aradia, long since moirails, had the middle floor. While other trolls took up residence elsewhere, Karkat preferred to have Gamzee close enough to keep an eye on him. You didn't exactly blame him, but you decided long ago to just let it be, and let them go about their business.

"Did you sleep okay?" You asked him and he clicked on the gas stove before answering.

"It would have been better if you hadn't snored all night."

You didn't have to say anything to that. You both knew you didn't snore.

He was half smiling now, his eyes on the food, flipping as carefully as he could. He still wasn't used to so many cooking utensils. After a few minutes, you both fell silent. The silence between the two of you wasn't uncomfortable, or even judgmental. It was a comforting sort of silence, soft wind from the open window whispering greetings from the warm sunlight, a sort of silence where you didn't have to say anything; you both knew everything there was to say already. You smiled and welcomed the silence while Karkat, who was always less tense in your company, did as well.


End file.
